Gwynedd home costs plunge as council acts on second properties

Home costs in a county the place the council has launched measures to crack down on second properties have fallen by greater than 12% year-on-year, in keeping with new figures.

The native authority in Gwynedd, north-west Wales, not too long ago launched a requirement to acquire planning permission to show residential properties into second properties or vacation lets.

It is usually certainly one of a variety of Welsh councils which costs a 150% council tax premium on such properties, having upped this from 100% in 2023.

The council, Cyngor Gwynedd, mentioned its purpose was to “enhance the supply of high-quality, inexpensive properties for native folks”.

The autumn in worth represents the most important annual drop of any area within the Principality Constructing Society’s Wales Home Worth Index, overlaying residential property gross sales within the closing three months of 2024.

The typical home worth in Wales has remained broadly flat year-on-year and is now £233,194, in keeping with the constructing society.

Tom Williams and his household, who dwell in Lancashire, are struggling to promote the second house they personal in Morfa Nefyn, Gwynedd.

“I’ve 4 grandchildren who had a beautiful time there each summer season and it has been nice, we have cherished it,” mentioned Mr Williams, who has owned the home for 20 years.

Mr Williams and his spouse put the home in the marketplace in April 2024 however mentioned they’d had little curiosity from potential patrons, regardless of dropping the value by £40,000.

“I put it all the way down to all the opposite properties within the village which are up on the market for the time being,” he mentioned.

Mr Williams believes among the interventions by the council have prompted lots of people to promote, whereas additionally laying aside potential patrons.

Cyngor Gwynedd has been attempting to handle the scarcity of housing for native folks in vacationer areas and has greater than doubled the council tax cost on second and vacation properties.

The council additionally not too long ago launched Article 4, which requires property house owners to acquire planning permission to show residential properties into second or vacation properties.

“I’ve spoken to lots of households who’ve had properties there for generations they usually’re saying the identical factor – how can we stock on with this?” mentioned Mr Williams.

North Wales property agent Dafydd Hardy described the housing market in Gwynedd as “combined”, with native interventions on second properties resulting in “extra properties approaching to the market”.

However he mentioned the value of a second house was typically “outdoors the affordability of the native purchaser”.

“What we have to see is steadiness out there,” he mentioned, together with “extra home constructing so far as first-time patrons are involved”.

The brand new figures are primarily based on seasonally-adjusted knowledge from the Land Registry, however lots of various factors can have an effect on the image that knowledge finally ends up portray.

Components comparable to rates of interest, regional job alternatives, interventions within the native housing market by a council and even the variety of transactions can all have an effect on home costs.

It means there may be some uncertainty about what induced the drop in costs in Gwynedd within the 12 months to December.

Pembrokeshire noticed the second largest annual fall in costs at 8.9%.

The council there not too long ago voted to scale back the council tax premium on second properties from 200% to 150%.

By comparability, Carmarthenshire noticed the most important year-on-year enhance in home costs at 9.2%.

The council there may be introducing a council tax premium of 100% on second properties from April.

Iain Mansfield of the Principality Constructing Society mentioned the housing market throughout Wales had proven “resilience” over the previous 12 months.

Gross sales had been up by 28% year-on-year, which Mr Mansfield mentioned demonstrated “better client confidence” with decrease rates of interest making mortgages extra inexpensive.

“I feel we’re seeing a extra constructive outlook for these individuals who wish to purchase a home in 2025,” mentioned Mr Mansfield.

Mr Mansfield mentioned the “sizeable” drop in costs in Gwynedd over the previous 12 months was mirrored in “among the different coastal areas in Wales”.

He mentioned the drop might “doubtlessly” be defined by “among the interventions which have been made within the space round second house possession”.

Cyngor Gwynedd mentioned “over 65% of Gwynedd’s inhabitants was priced out of the housing market” and tackling the housing scarcity was a “key precedence”.

It mentioned it launched Article 4 to “achieve higher management over the present housing inventory” they usually had been “constantly monitoring its results”.

It added among the cash raised by the council tax premium was used to allow “the event of recent properties, the creation of supported lodging for these dealing with homelessness and grants and loans to assist native folks safe housing, amongst many different tasks”.